Officials are investigating whether or not 141 earless Baikal seals starved to death or died due to other causes. Carcasses started washing up along shore lines of the world’s deepest lake. Most of the dead seals who washed up were pregnant females.
The populations is estimated to about 130,000, the lake near the Mongolian border holds 1,500 species of plants and animals which exists nowhere else in the world. Agency say most likely the reason of death was due to scarcity of food due to growing populations.
When the dead seals were searched and tested all seals had no food in their stomachs.
Disease outbreaks have been ruled out and lab samples show no trace of the animals being eaten. The populations shot up after hunting of these animals was outlawed. However now a number of scientists and local leaders are asking for a limited number for hunting to control population.
